SARA 2022 Keynote Address to the Eastern Conference
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Dr. Wolfgang Herrmann's keynote address to the Society of Amateur Radio Astronomers 2022 Eastern conference.
Title: Amateur Radio Astronomy Possibilities and Limitations, Do's and Don'ts
Wolfgang Herrmann, Astropeiler Stockert e.V.
SARA: www.radio-astronomy.org
Astropeiler Stockert Observatory: www.astropeiler.de
DSES: www.dses.science
Amateur radio astronomy covers a wide field from meteors, our solar system, objects in the milky way and extragalactic sources. Very different physical processes cause the emission which can be observed. Due to great variety of observing objects, different approaches are required for each of these areas.
The talk will give an overview of the options which are open to amateurs and discuss the required instrumentation and tools to be successful. Examples will be given from various amateur observatories what can be achieved. Naturally, there are also various pitfalls which can get in the way. The talk will discuss, what mistakes should be avoided and what path might be good to become a “professional amateur”.
Keywords: radio astronomy, ham radio, meteors, solar, pulsars, FRB, interferometry